Today in rock history: On this date in 1978, The Grateful Dead traveled to Egypt to perform a series of concerts at the Great Pyramid of Giza, beside the Great Sphinx. The shows were attended mostly by Deadheads from America, the band’s loyal, dedicated group of fans and followers. The shows were plagued with problems including equipment trucks getting stuck in sand on the way to the concert site and having to be towed by camels. Electrical problems also affected the band’s ability to record its shows as they’d been accustomed to doing. The band was accompanied by counterculture figure and novelist Ken Kesey and concert promoter Bill Graham who both filmed parts of these historic shows on Super 8 film. One of the shows was performed while a lunar eclipse was occurring which made this legendary run of shows some of the most memorable and ambitious of the band’s long history of live performances. The Florida Holocaust Museum in St. Petersburg currently has an exhibition on Graham on display, get info on that here.
Today in rock history: On this date in 1976, future disco music star Cheryl Lynn appeared on the comedic, talent-contest-type game show, The Gong Show. Lynn began singing as part of a church choir as a child and by the time she appeared on the TV show at age 19, she was already a fine, powerful singer. Lynn performed a jaw-dropping version of the Billy Preston-penned ballad “You Are So Beautiful,” which was a huge hit for British singer Joe Cocker in 1975. Although Lynn wowed the judges and the audience with her appearance, she sadly lost the competition to a juggler who appeared on the same episode. Although she didn’t win, the next day saw Lynn overrun with offers to sign to a major-label recording contract. Lynn signed with Columbia Records and, within two years, her smash self-titled debut album — which contained one of the most popular disco songs of all time, the #1 soul single, “Got To Be Real” — would be released.
Today in rock history: On this date in 1974, R&B singer and composer Barry White was at the top of both Billboard’s pop singles chart and the publication’s R&B singles chart with his monster hit, “Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe.” The song hailed from the singer’s third album, Can’t Get Enough, which also boasted another hit, "You're the First, the Last, My Everything." “Can’t Get Enough of Your Love, Babe” was the second No. 1 hit from the singer with the booming bass baritone voice (his 1973 instrumental classic, “Love’s Theme,” was the first). A three-time Grammy award winner, White was one of the best-selling musical artists of the 1970s with 100 million records sold worldwide. “Can’t Get Enough of Your Love, Babe” was later covered by pop singer Taylor Dayne as well as by indie rock band, Afghan Whigs. White passed away at the age of 58 in 2003 but left behind a wealth of great music and plenty of hit singles. Taylor Dane is in town this weekend as part of Amalie Arena's Freestyle Explosion, get info on that show here.
Today in rock history: on this date in 1955, rock and roll legend Little Richard began recording his sizzling debut album, Here’s Little Richard. The album wouldn’t be released until 1957 and, in the interim, Richard would score six Top 40 singles, some of which appeared on this dynamic record. Essential rock and roll classics and hit singles on Little Richard’s first full-length release included “Long Tall Sally,” “Rip It Up,” “Jenny, Jenny” and “Ready Teddy.” Here’s Little Richard would peak at No. 13 on Billboard’s pop albums chart and would be the first in a long line of great albums the colorful icon would release. Released on the Specialty Records label, the album has been reissued several times and is often hailed as one of the best and most historic debut albums in rock history.
This article appears in Sep 13-20, 2018.